Hops

Our Hydroponic Hops Project...

We proudly grow our own hydroponic hops in collaboration with our partners at Water Fresh Farm, who have significant expertise in the science of hydroponic growth. Together, we started our hydroponic hop journey by potting several hop varieties in early 2016. Our goal was to learn about hydroponic hop growth while creating special hops that would contribute to making extraordinary beer. We love the results.

Hydroponics is the science of growing plants in non-soil media to which nutrient enriched water is added. While there is a rich history and much knowledge about both growing hops and hydronic growth methods, there are only a few hydroponic hop efforts currently underway in the United States.

Benefits of hydroponic hops include growing in a controlled environment, efficient use of energy through automation, environmentally-friendly disease and insect control, and reduced water use in comparison to field growth. When you visit Start Line Brewing and Water Fresh Farm in Hopkinton, you can see and learn more about hydroponics.

We use our own grown hydroponic hops in many of our beer recipes. These complex, hand-picked, whole cone, pesticide-free hops are high in essential oils and produce amazing aromas. All grown a short distance from our brew kettle, these hops are part of the pursuit that starts here.